Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a pressing tool for producing a non-detachable pipe connection comprising holding means for holding the periphery of at least one first tubular or sleeve-shaped connection element and sliding means for peripherally holding and axially moving at least one second tubular or sleeve-shaped connection element, the sliding means being movable along a first axial operating direction towards the holding means to press two interengaging tubular or sleeve-shaped connection elements. The invention also relates to a system for producing a non-detachable pipe connection using a pressing tool of this type.
Description of Related Art
Pressing tools of the type mentioned above are used during the installation of pipeline systems. In this respect, the pressing tools are used to join individual pipes or pipeline elements by means of so-called fittings. One end of a pipe which is to be joined is inserted into a fitting, which is usually also tubular or sleeve-shaped, at an end face of the fitting. Using the pressing tool, the fitting is pressed in a radial direction against the allocated end of the pipe, the pressing tool usually engaging around the periphery of the fitting and the pipe. During the pressing procedure, the fitting and pipe are plastically deformed in a radial direction and are joined together thus in an non-detachable manner.
On the one hand, pressing tools are known, by which the fitting and pipe are directly deformed in the radial direction by a narrowing of a receiving region in which the periphery of the fitting and pipe is held, the “radial direction” being oriented transversely to the longitudinal extent of the end of the pipe to be joined. On the other hand, axial joining methods are known in which two-part or multi-part fittings are usually used. In this respect, a pressing sleeve is pushed in an axial direction onto a base body of the fitting, which base body is also sleeve-shaped and surrounds the pipe end to be respectively joined, the “axial direction” being oriented along the longitudinal extent of the pipe end and thereby transversely to the pipe cross section. The diameter of the inner lateral surface of the pressing sleeve is tapered over the width of the pressing sleeve, so that when the pressing sleeve is pushed on axially, the base body of the fitting and the pipe end to be joined are narrowed radially in diameter.
DE 10 2012 105 655 A1 discloses a generic pressing tool which is provided to axially join two-part or multi-part fittings in the manner described above. The pressing tool known from this document has swivel modules which can swivel relative to one another, a receiving region for receiving a pipe and a fitting being formed between the swivel modules. A slide device serves to push a pressing sleeve onto a sleeve-shaped base body of a fitting in an axial operating direction along the receiving region, the base body being clamped or fixed in a holding device of the tool during the pressing procedure.
It is a disadvantage of the pressing tool known from DE 10 2012 105 655 A1 that the pushing movement of the pressing sleeve by the slide unit of the pressing tool is restricted axially to one operating direction. If, for example, a fitting with two opposite pressing ends is to be joined, a first pressing sleeve has to be firstly pushed onto the first pressing end of the fitting along a first operating direction. Thereafter, a second pressing sleeve has to be pushed onto the second pressing end of the fitting along a second operating direction opposite the first operating direction. Since the axial stroke of the slide unit of the pressing tool known from DE 10 2012 105 655 A1 is restricted to one operating direction, the pressing tool has to be rotated by 180° between the two pressing procedures before the second pressing sleeve can be pressed in the second operating direction. Therefore, the joining of fittings or sleeves having two pressing ends is laborious and time-intensive.